Barry DuVal, President & CEO of the Virginia Chamber of Commerce, issued the following statement today in advance of President Trump’s expected announcement on tariffs:

“President Trump’s expected announcement of a 25 percent tariff on imported steel and a 10 percent tariff on imported aluminum is a major concern for Virginia’s economy. While the new tariffs are intended to reduce the demand for imported goods, thus opening the market to domestic producers, these new tariffs will directly harm Virginia manufacturers by raising costs for material, putting them at a competitive disadvantage in a global economy. This would result in job losses and higher prices for consumers.

In 2017, Virginia imported over $492 million in steel and aluminum, important resources that go into other products produced in Virginia.  These tariffs, if they were to go into effect, could cost the Virginia manufacturing and construction industries up to $58 million. In addition, 1,919 Virginia workers are directly employed in steel and aluminum production, and approximately 115,503 workers are employed in Virginia industries that use steel and aluminum.

These tariffs would also have a detrimental impact on jobs in Virginia related to trade. According to a 2015 study by the Virginia Chamber Foundation’s Center for Trade, Virginia exports generated $2 billion in tax revenue in 2014, and represented 30% of Virginia’s economic growth from 2009-2014. Every region of Virginia would be impacted by a loss of trade-related jobs.”

##

About the Virginia Chamber of Commerce

The Virginia Chamber of Commerce is the largest business advocacy organization in the Commonwealth, with more than 26,000 members. The Chamber is a non-partisan, business advocacy organization that works in the legislative, regulatory and political arenas to act as the catalyst for positive change in all areas of economic development and competitiveness for Virginia. In December 2017, the Chamber released an update to its long-term strategic economic development plan, Blueprint Virginia 2025, which engaged over 6,000 business and community leaders to lay out a plan to getting Virginia back to the top of national business climate rankings. Learn more at www.vachamber.com